Social capital in slaughter cooperatives in the quality beef supply chain in the state of Paraná, Brazil

Abstract

The question of trust, or the lack thereof, has always been present in exchange relationships within the beef supply chain, particularly with regard to high-quality products. This study aimed to understand how social capital influenced the creation and continuity of three slaughter cooperatives in the state of Paraná, Brazil. The theoretical framework addressed the discussion on social capital. A qualitative descriptive research was performed by using 31 semi-structured interviews with agents from three slaughter cooperatives, and through non-participant observation. The content analysis technique was used for data analysis by means of the Atlas.ti software. The analysis categories were defined a priori based on the studied literature, namely networks, norms, and trust. As a result, considering the difficulty of alliances and cooperatives operating in the beef supply chain, given the possibility of conflicts in an environment averse to cooperation, which could compromise the functioning of cooperatives, this has been mitigated by social capital. As a theoretical contribution, the need to use the broader concept of social capital, including networks, norms and trust, as carried out in this research, to encompass the various social aspects relevant to cooperative relationships, is highlighted. In addition, it was shown that trust based on social aspects was more important for creating the cooperative, and that trust based on economic aspects is more relevant to its continuity. As an empirical contribution, given the influence of the identified social capital, it is argued in this study that growth decisions cannot be based solely on economic aspects.